


Emptiness

by Narina



Series: February Ficlet Challenge 2019 [2]
Category: Fire Emblem Echoes: Mou Hitori no Eiyuu Ou | Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia
Genre: Character Death In Dream, F/M, Shared Dream
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-02
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-10-21 03:10:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17634911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Narina/pseuds/Narina
Summary: They wake up in a perfect world. But can that be reality?





	Emptiness

Waking up next to Mathilda was all he ever wanted. She snuggled up to him in her sleep, resting her head on his chest, her hair tied back into an even braid. Clive still couldn’t believe he was married to a woman as wonderful as her. 

“You’re staring.” Her fingers brushed his cheek and he smiled. 

“How could I not?” They were married, they had peace, they had a home. Life was perfect, what more could they want?

Mathilda laughed, kissed him and got up, always so eager to start a new day. They had stopped fighting and while their lances were still polished and their armour ready, there hadn’t been a need for that since they moved here. 

Clive got up, preparing breakfast while Mathilda took care of the horses. They had no plans for the day, maybe a ride through the forest would be nice. Maybe they would cuddle and read a book, just enjoy their time together. 

~

Something felt wrong. Clive couldn’t name it because what about their happiness could possibly wrong? They had gotten a letter from Clair just yesterday, they were thinking about children, they had it all. So why did he still get this feeling? This feeling of having to correct a mistake, this feeling of being needed elsewhere? It was like someone far away was calling for him. 

“I thought I heard your sister today,” Mathilda told him over dinner and he froze. Clair. His sister. How long had they been here now? She had sent that letter but she had never visited.

“Have you ever seen anyone else?”

Mathilda frowned, tilting her head to the side. “I don’t think so.”

“Yeah.” Clive rested his spoon on the plate, suddenly not hungry anymore. Where had they even gotten the food? He didn’t remember going to the market, talking to anyone, growing it. It was just there. “What is going on?” 

~

They did not find an answer that day. They walked around, aimlessly looking for someone, something, any sign of life. There were birds, just a few. There were their horses. There wasn’t much else and even the plants seemed off, too green and perfect. 

Clive couldn’t remember moving out here. He remembered their ride into Rigel, the choice to finally face Duma and then … then he woke up with Mathilda in his arms and the world was perfect. Or was it just an illusion? The seasons should have changed by now. The food should have run out. Something should have happened. 

“We might find the answer in a book,” Mathilda suggested and he nodded. They had never actually spent time in their library, always distracted by something, always forgetting about it. Even now it was like they were being pulled away, like somebody did not want them there. Clive didn’t want to think about it, didn’t want to acknowledge the possibility of Duma manipulating them to keep them from fighting. 

Mathilda was the first to grab a book from the shelves, the first to open it and to gasp. He peered over her shoulder, placing a hand on her waist to secure them both. At least they still had each other. 

The book was blank. The pages white, too white. No words were written here, not in this volume nor in any other. Clive held Mathilda as she hid her face against his chest. Neither of them had ever been weak but what power did they hold against a god?

~

They left home soon after that discovery, unable to live in a house full of emptiness. Side by side they rode, day after day and always looking for answers. Always looking for a way out, a way back home. This world was no longer perfection, it was a shattered dream and both would rather live poor than allow Duma to rise to power. 

No human was around, no being to tell them. But after a while, days or months or years, they found a shrine similar to one they used to know. A shrine dedicated to Mila, maybe her way of slipping into Duma’s creation. Clive felt new hope well up inside of him as Mathilda reached out to take his hand. Would they finally get out? Would they finally find out how their own world had changed?

“Welcome, my heroes.”

~

Mila’s solution had been simple and Clive’s hand was shaking. He couldn’t do it. Mathilda’s hand rested on top of his own and he still wasn’t strong enough. 

They would return to the point they had left. Return to the battle field, ready to fight Duma. But they had to die. In this world, Duma’s gift and curse, they had to kill each other if they ever wanted to go home. It was another test and he was failing it. 

“Please, my love.” Mathilda stepped closer, kissing him like she never did in the other world. They had not been married, it had not been appropriate. Here, they had every freedom. “I believe in you.”

Clive took a deep breath and nodded. Mila had offered them knives but they had decided to use their lances, their own weapons. He smiled weakly and kissed her again before stepping into position. The tip of his lance sat on top of her heart and the mere thought of killing her tore him apart. 

“On three,” she said, so much braver than him. How could he ever deserve her? 

“One.” His palm was sweaty and he clenched his jaw. “Two.” Her eyes were so gentle yet so full of pain. Not for herself, he realized. She did not want to do this, they both had to. “Three.”

It didn’t hurt, not physically. It just ended. 

~

Clive woke gasping for air. He was on the ground, his horse stood a few metres away and a voice called his name. “Mathilda,” he managed, opening his eyes to the battlefield. 

She was there, just standing up, leaning heavily on her weapon. “We made it,” she said, stumbling over and falling down to hug him. “We made it.”

“We did.” Together, they stood up, smiling despite the fights raging all around them. “Ready to fight again?”

“Always.” Mathilda kissed him, returned to her horse and rejoined the battle. Clive followed her like he always did. The illusion had been perfect but right now, Mathilda once again looked like a goddess and he would not let Duma ruin anything.


End file.
